Kenny Wright and Ramon Walker

[Marcus]

These two both had ACL tears in December of last season.

Any word on rehab, availablity for training camp, etc.?

[aj.]

I'm pretty sure Wright's was a PCL which doesn't require quite as much rehab as the ACL. If that's the case we will probably see him before Walker. We may not see Walker until mid-season or he could be a PUP candidate. Nine months would be pushing it for surgery on an ACL tear, and since he had his surgery in early December nine months would be September.

Got this off a Raiders website: A player who is put on the PUP list before the preseason's first roster cutdown (from 80 to 65 players) must remain inactive through the sixth week of the regular season. At that point, he has a three-week practice "window" before he must either return to the 53-man roster or end his season on injured reserve.

[BornOrange]

So right now the safety depth chart is this:

Free Safety
Marcus Coleman
Marlon McCree
Curry Burns
Jammal Lord

Strong Safety
Eric Brown
Ramon Walker
Glenn Earl

With both Walker and Earl trying to come back from major knee injuries, McCree could end up as the de facto backup for both safety spots, with either Burns or Lord making the squad almost strictly as special teams performers. If Burns wins the job, Lord would surely be put on the practice squad. If Lord wins the job, I don't know if Burns would be eligible for the practice squad or not. The following is part of Burns bio on the main page.

PRO: Aggressive safety with good size and speed…played in one game for the Texans last season after initially being waived in training camp…also spent time on Oakland’s practice squad…originally drafted by the Texans in the seventh round (217th overall) of the 2003 NFL Draft.
2003: Saw action in one game for Houston…waived by the Texans on 8/25…signed by the Texans on 12/2…inactive at Jacksonville (12/7), at Tampa Bay (12/14) and versus Tennessee (12/21)…made NFL debut in season finale against Indianapolis (12/28), recording one special teams tackle.

Burns was on the Texans squad for about a month, playing in one game. I don't know how long he was on Oakland's practice squad. I don't know if he would be eligible to be on the practice squad again this year or not.

Anyway, the backup for strong safety could be up in the air if both Walker and Earl aren't recovered enough from last year's injuries. Lord probably needs a year of practice before he gets put in the defensive secondary. Burns could end up making the squad by default, being the only option available.

[aj.]

McCree isn't a viable backup at SS imo. Even though he's basically the same size as Ramon Walker, he doesn't have the hard head, attitude or instinct to come up and meet the run effectively. Lord has better size to play SS but after being an option QB who knows if he likes to hit or not.

[BornOrange]

I'm not saying that McCree would be an ideal backup at strong safety but McCree may be the only viable option. He has game experience in the secondary which Burns and Lord don't have. He won't be great against the run, but he won't be a total disaster. He would also be less likely to have a major screwup in pass coverage, which Burns and Lord will probably have problems with at first.